Source: QS World University Ranking 2016/17

The QS World University Ranking for 2016/17, the thirteenth of its kind, was released on Tuesday with Chinese mainland universities grabbing three places in top 50 for the first time, second only to the US and the UK, chinanews.com reported.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology tops the list for the fifth consecutive year. Tsinghua, Peking and Fudan universities rank No 24, 39 and 43 on the list, respectively.

The respected annual ranking is formulated by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), a British company founded in 1990, specializing in education and study abroad programs.

The result is based on a set of criteria designed to reflect key priorities for universities, including academic reputation, employer reputation, faculty/student ratio, citations per faculty, international faculty and international students, according to the education institution.

It is the first time Fudan University has been included in the top 50, jumping from No 51 last year and No 71 the year before. The progress reflects Fudan University's efforts in research, teaching, employability, internationalization and accumulation of its reputation.

Using China's universities as examples, QS said top universities dominated by the US and the UK were "facing a growing challenge from the world's emerging economic powers".

QS World University Ranking 2016/17: Top 10

The screenshot shows the latest ranking released by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), a British company specializing in education and study abroad programs.[Photo/ topuniversities.com]